Infra debt fund can be set up as company or trust

“IDF being a pass-through vehicle is easily workable if set up as a trust. However, since a trust cannot issue bonds or undertake credit enhancement and cannot get withholding tax benefits, an IDF would also have to be allowed as a company,” the ministry said in a statement.

An IDF would be regulated by the Reserve Bank of India if set up as a company, while it would be under the control of the Securities and Exchange Board of India if formed as a trust, the statement said.

As a company, the IDF could be set up by one or more sponsors, including NBFCs, IFCs or banks, and would be allowed liberal prescription of risk-weightage (50% instead of 100%), net owned funds (minimum Tier I equity of R150 crore) and exposure norms (not as a percentage of net-owned funds), it added.

It would raise resources through the issue of either rupee or dollar-denominated bonds of minimum five-year maturity, which would be tradeable among equivalent (domestic vs foreign) investors. It would invest in debt securities of only PPP projects which have a buy out guarantee and have completed at least one year of commercial operation.

Refinance by the IDF would be up to 85% of the total debt covered by the concession agreement and senior lenders would retain the remaining 15% for which

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